1. How Much Exercise Do You Get Playing Golf?
What is it that you love about the game of golf? Is it the opportunity to compete against both yourself and the other players around you? Maybe the scenery, or the chance to spend quality time outdoors with some of your closest friends? Most likely, you enjoy everything about the game and what it has to offer, which is why you keep coming back time and time again. Golfers are extremely loyal to their chosen sport, a fact that is due largely to the sheer number of compelling reasons to play this great game.
One of the most-often overlooked reasons to play golf is exercise. Those who don't play the sport may laugh at this notion – after all, if you just watch golf from a distance, it sure doesn't look like the players are getting very much exercise at all. However, once you are out on the course walking a full 18-hole round with a bag on your bag, that perception changes quickly. Playing golf without the use of a cart is actually quite demanding, and even someone in good physical condition is likely to be tired at the end of a round.
2. Walk the Golf Course for Added Health Benefits
But there’s no question that walking the course is healthier than riding a cart. There are numerous studies that prove it.
The Rose Center for Health & Sports Sciences (Colorado) found that a golfer walking 18 holes can burn 1,400 calories or more, compared with 800 calories used when playing in a cart. Research by cardiologist Dr. Edward A. Palank revealed that walking can reduce bad cholesterol, while riding does not. Golf Science International determined a four-hour walking round to equal the benefits of 45 minutes in fitness class.
Generally speaking, you’ll walk about 5-7 miles during an 18-hole round over a course measuring 6,000 yards or more. Depending on the terrain, your heart rate will increase to an average of 111 – 119 beats per minute and top out at around 150 bpm.
3. Using Yoga to Improve Your Golf Game
Yoga seems easy. Most people who haven’t tried it think that it’s just a bunch of stretches. In truth, it can be incredibly difficult and is physically taxing. It, in fact, can give you more power on your swing that an hour lifting weights.
Power in golf and in most sports comes from a smooth flow of energy from your feet, through your core, and through your arms. It’s an interesting conflict – you need strength to hit the ball, but you need to relax to allow your body to work at its best. Yoga can give you the ability to relax your muscles so that you can transfer energy smoothly through your body, increasing your body. Its stretches can also make sure that you’re properly warmed up the moment you stand beside your first tee of the day.
